State Layoff-Notice Laws
Federal WARN is not the only law that may apply to a plant closing or mass layoff. Several states have their own layoff-notice laws, commonly called “mini-WARN” laws.
Some state laws cover smaller employers or layoffs, require more notice, mandate severance pay, or add requirements that federal WARN does not. Others largely follow the federal thresholds but create additional state reporting, enforcement, or notice-content requirements.
Being laid off in one of the states below does not automatically mean the law was violated. Each law has its own definitions, thresholds, exceptions, and deadlines. However, the fact that federal WARN does not apply does not necessarily mean the employer had no notice obligations.
Important Limitations
These summaries provide a starting point, not a final determination of whether a particular layoff was legal. Coverage may depend on the employer’s size, the number and location of affected employees, when the job losses occurred, how long a layoff lasts, and whether an exception applies.
Some cities and states also have narrower requirements involving particular industries, continued health coverage, unemployment reporting, or notice to government agencies. Those requirements may matter even when a state is not listed here.
If you believe an employer failed to provide legally required notice, save your layoff letter, severance agreement, recent pay records, benefits information, and any company-wide announcement showing how many positions were affected. Consider speaking with an employment attorney familiar with WARN claims in your state.
California
California’s WARN Act generally requires covered establishments that employ, or have employed within the previous 12 months, at least 75 employees to provide 60 days’ written notice before certain mass layoffs, closures, or relocations. California uses different definitions and thresholds than federal WARN, including no federal-style percentage requirement for a mass layoff involving 50 or more employees.
Delaware
The Delaware WARN Act generally requires employers with at least 100 employees to provide 60 days’ written notice before certain mass layoffs, plant closings, or relocations. Required notices must include information about affected workers and any severance, payouts, relocation opportunities, or retirement options being offered.
Hawaii
Hawaii’s Dislocated Workers Act applies to certain closings, partial closings, and relocations resulting from a sale, transfer, merger, business takeover, bankruptcy, or other covered business transaction. The law generally requires advance written notice and may provide eligible workers with an allowance that supplements unemployment benefits for up to four weeks.
Illinois
The Illinois WARN Act generally applies to employers with 75 or more full-time employees, compared with the federal law’s general employer threshold of 100 employees. It requires 60 days’ advance notice before covered plant closings or mass layoffs and may apply when fewer workers are affected than federal WARN requires.
Iowa
The Iowa WARN Act generally requires employers with 25 or more employees to provide 30 days’ advance notice before a covered business closing or mass layoff. Its employer threshold is considerably lower than the federal WARN threshold.
Maine
Maine law generally requires a covered establishment with 100 or more employees to give the state at least 90 days’ notice before certain closings or relocations. Maine also has separate severance protections that may require eligible employees affected by a covered closing or mass layoff to receive one week of pay for each year and partial year of employment.
Maryland
Maryland’s Economic Stabilization Act generally applies to employers with at least 50 employees and requires 60 days’ written notice before certain reductions in operations. A covered reduction may include a relocation or shutdown affecting at least 25% of the employees at a workplace or 15 employees, whichever is greater.
Review Maryland WARN and Economic Stabilization Act information
New Hampshire
New Hampshire generally requires covered employers with at least 75 employees to provide 60 days’ written notice before certain plant closings or mass layoffs. Its law contains state-specific definitions, thresholds, exceptions, and administrative enforcement procedures.
New Jersey
New Jersey generally requires covered employers to provide 90 days’ notice before certain mass layoffs, terminations of operations, or transfers of operations. Its law can count job losses across an employer’s New Jersey locations and generally requires covered employees to receive severance equal to one week of pay for each completed year of employment.
New York
New York’s WARN Act generally applies to private employers with 50 or more full-time employees and requires 90 days’ advance notice. It can cover plant closings affecting at least 25 employees and mass layoffs involving fewer workers than federal WARN requires.
Ohio
Ohio law requires employers to comply with the federal WARN Act and uses the same general employer and layoff thresholds. The state law adds specific notice-content requirements, including a detailed explanation for the closing or layoff and information about unemployment benefits, reemployment rights, retraining, and other assistance.
Tennessee
Tennessee’s Plant Closing and Reduction in Operations law covers certain employers with at least 50 but no more than 99 employees, filling part of the gap below federal WARN’s general 100-employee threshold. It applies to covered reductions involving 50 or more employees and requires notice to the state when affected employees are notified.
Vermont
Vermont’s Notice of Potential Layoffs Act requires covered employers to notify the state before certain business closings or mass layoffs affecting 50 or more employees. Vermont’s law focuses heavily on early state involvement and rapid-response assistance and does not create exactly the same notice rights as federal WARN.
Washington
Washington’s state layoff-notice law generally requires employers with at least 50 full-time employees in the state to provide 60 days’ written notice before a covered business closing or mass layoff affecting at least 50 full-time employees. The law also prohibits an employer from including an employee who is currently on paid family or medical leave in a mass layoff, except under certain circumstances.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin’s Business Closing and Mass Layoff Law generally applies to businesses employing at least 50 people in the state. Covered employers must provide 60 days’ written notice before certain business closings, mass layoffs, or reductions in hours, and the law may apply to smaller employment losses than federal WARN covers.
Last reviewed: August 4, 2026